


Making Christmas Real Again

by MrsNoraPalmer



Series: 25 Days of Darhkatom [1]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Christmas, F/M, Fluff, Some angst, Some feels, but it's all resolved by the end don't worry, i'm actually kind of not, i'm sorry this is so fluffy, ray palmer being ray palmer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-05 08:28:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16807069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsNoraPalmer/pseuds/MrsNoraPalmer
Summary: Ray and Nora are all cuddled up for their romantic Christmas-y evening until Ray hits a nerve that has Nora cutting it short. That leaves Ray with only one option: Show Nora Darhk that Christmas can be the most wonderful time of year.





	Making Christmas Real Again

**Author's Note:**

> I’m sorry this is so long and if I kill anyone because of Darhkatom feels.

They like to sit here when no one else is awake. The stairs between Sara’s office and the com center are cold but they usually warm up once they sit there for a few minutes. It’s funny to see the 19th century looking library juxtaposed with the 23rd century time ship command center. She saw a festive mug appear in front of her face and she took it. The mug was of Santa’s head and his smile was about as goofy as her boyfriend’s. She felt him sit down next to her and pull her closer to his side. His body warmth was usually what lulled her to sleep, if he wasn’t careful, he’d have to carry her back to his room. Their room.

She took a sip of the hot chocolate, prepared exactly how she liked it. She grinned uncontrollably at the thought that he never forgot how she liked her hot cocoa. She leaned her head on his shoulder and stared at the green ripples out the window. “You know, this view would be a bit more picturesque if there was snow rather than green ripples.”

Ray smirked. “Well, Miss Darhk, I thought you would never ask. Gideon, project program Darhk-Palmer Christmas.”

“Right away, Dr. Palmer.” The lights dimmed around them slightly and the windows began to project what instead looked like houses light up in extravagant Christmas lights and decor with the ground littered with snow.

Nora gasped in awe at the winter wonderland appearing before her. Their perspective made it seem like they were sitting in a living room admiring the Christmas lights on other houses in their neighborhood. The thought continued to grow until it gave Nora a shiver down her spine. A pleasant feeling bloomed in the pit of her stomach. She closed her eyes, imagining they were in a house of their own, not on the Waverider, staying up to spend quiet moments with one another on Christmas Eve.

“Nora? Earth to Nora?” Ray waved a hand in front of her face and she snapped out of her rabbit hole.

“Sorry… I was just…”

“Thinking about this as if it were real?”

“Was it really that obvious?” She blushed and looked away.

Ray smiled. “No… but I was doing the same thing. This is actually the view from my childhood home. This was what our neighborhood looked like when I was growing up. I always thought the sight was spectacular. And I wanted to share it with you.” He kissed the top of her head.

Nora smiled into her mug. “I’m trying to think of the last Christmas my family spent together. I think it was right after we moved to Star City. I guess for you it wasn’t that long ago, but to me that was another lifetime. My mother decorated the tree in the most beautiful lights and ornaments… the tree topper was my favorite. It was one of the most beautiful stars I’d ever seen. We were happy. Just a regular happy family having a normal Christmas. But then it all changed within months. I don’t usually like to think about those times, because of how good they were. They were pre-Mallus, pre-knowing every atrocity my parents were connected to, pre-every atrocity I was connected to.”

Ray reached for her hand. “Was is the right word. You’re different now and you should look back on that memory with warmth and fondness, Nora. I think it will help you look forward.”

“Forward to what? Living under house arrest on a time ship where the only time we see snow Christmas is if we jump to a part and place in time where it’s there? I love that you wanted to try and bring a little bit of Christmas here by showing me what you used to see when you were my age: when I had that last, good Christmas with my parents but, this is just an illusion. Gideon, end program.” Gideon raised the lights and cut the projection from the windows. Nora stood up and Ray immediately got to his feet.

“Nora…” Ray tried but she held her hand up.

She shook her head. “Ray, I’m not really in the mood for a hope speech. Let’s just go to bed, okay?” She gave him a sad smile and lowered her defensive hand to offer it to him.

He took her hand and followed her to their room, knowing he had to fix this. But not tonight. 

xxxx

Ray Palmer had one thing on his mind. Well two. But they both related to Nora Darhk, the wonderful, beautiful, kind, but sometimes sad woman that laid next to him in bed. The first of the two things being the ring that now burned a hole in his bedside table that he had to sneak back into the drawer when they returned to the room. His grand plan had been to show her the view from his childhood home, ask her how she liked it, if she would like to see every Christmas from that view, tell her he bought his childhood home, for them to live in, eventually, and then ask her to marry him. None of that happened. 

He knew she liked to shut down, retreat inward, for the sake of not opening up wounds that she didn’t cause. She didn’t seem to have as much of a problem with processing through things that she had done as Mallus’s vessel because she was remorseful of those and ready to repent from any responsibility she had in those actions. But bringing up the pain that came before. The pain that was caused by others seeking to hurt her because it would hurt their target. That was what made her shut down. She rarely wanted to talk about those times with him.

Which brought him to his next item on his list of ways Nora Darhk was always on his mind. He wanted to make Christmas real to her again. Give her an amazing Christmas memory regardless if that included asking her to become his wife. If he was going to do that, he was actually going to have to get started. Tonight.

xxxx

Nora woke the next morning, trying so hard to shake the nightmare she had. It was the last Christmas with her parents. But then her father turned into Mallus and destroyed everyone and everything around her, then asked her to be his vessel and engulfed her. It was a terrible nightmare and she couldn’t think of anything more comforting than Ray’s arms. She reached out for him only to find cold sheets. Was he upset with her because of what she said last night? Maybe he was talking with the other Legends about her attitude and that she needed to leave, to go back to the Time Bureau and live out her remaining sentence there.

She needed to run if that was the case.

Nora shoved essential bits of clothing into a duffle bag, not even bothering to change out of her pajamas and walked out of their room. Ray’s room.

She was hit was a strong smell, probably coming from the galley. It was cinnamon and sugar and she couldn’t quite place it honestly. And then she saw the hallways. Tinsel EVERYWHERE. She continued down the hallway until she reached the command center and covered her mouth in awe. Every inch was covered in some kind of Christmas decor. Lights. Tinsel. Wreaths. Figurines. A tree was in Sara’s office and behind the tree was her Ray. With a stupid Santa hat on. He came around the tree and over to her. 

“Good morning, sorry I wasn’t in the bed. I was doing all of this last night. I saved the tree for last. I was hoping we could decorate it together and maybe you could put this on top of the tree.” He pulled a large star tree topper from behind his back and Nora dropped her duffle bag. It looked exactly like the one that was on her childhood tree, from that last good Christmas. She started crying, tears of joy, and threw herself into Ray’s arms.

“You.” Kiss. “Are.” Kiss. “The most.” Kiss. “Wonderful.” Kiss. “Man!” She pulled away and took the tree topper in her hands. She ran her fingers over it, front and back. She couldn’t believe it. He had brought Christmas to her.

“I just wanted you to have a good Christmas. The first of many good Christmases from here on out. I don’t plan on you spending miserable days here, on house arrest. I want you to live life fully on here, while we’re both here on the ship. This has become home for me, physically, and you’ve become home for me, in here.” Ray took one of her hands and placed it over his heart. “I’m home, Nora Darhk, and I hope that you can one day feel that way about this place, too.”

“Ray… I really don’t know what to say. When I woke up this morning without you I just had assumed you finally got tired of me and were talking to the Legends about taking me back to the Time Bureau. Now that I can see that none of that is true… I think that I can at least agree with you in part of how you conceptualize home. Home is wherever you are.”

Ray grinned like an absolutely in love idiot and took off his Santa hat and placed it on her head. “The tree is a little tall, do you want a boost?” 

Nora nodded and suddenly she was not just lifted up by her waist but instead perched on one of Ray’s shoulders to be able to reach the top of the tree. A feeling rushed through Nora about how sexy it was that Ray was strong enough to lift her to this height and bear her weight on his one shoulder. She placed the tree topper on top of the tree and plugged it in to the rest of the lights and watched it come to life.

Ray sat her down and Nora wrapped her arms around his waist, wanting to stay there for a minute, just basking in their moment. Ray rubbed her back soothingly and Nora listened to his heartbeat.

“So… you know how I had said I had made the Waverider my home, physically?” Ray asked.

“Yes…”

“I have and it’s been good to me and it honestly brought us together, let’s be real. But I have been thinking so much, now that we are together and this is our first Christmas together, but how would you feel if this was our first and last Christmas on the Waverider?”

Nora lifted her head to look at him. “What do you mean?”

Ray chuckled. “Well… I showed you that projection of my house last night because I bought it. I bought my childhood in the hopes of sharing it with you.”

Nora could’ve sworn she stopped breathing. “Ray… but my probation and the Legends. They need you. I don’t want you to take away the best parts of your life because of me.”

“You’re the best part of my life, Nora Darhk. So much so that I want…”

“What? What do you want.”

“Hold on… two seconds… don’t let the moment leave but I will be right back.” Ray jogged down their quarters and tore through his side table to find the ring box. He shoved it in his sweatpants pocket and ran back to the com center. Nora was still standing there, arms wrapped around herself by the Christmas tree, looking like an actual Christmas angel. His Christmas angel.

“Where did you go?” She shook her head and laughed at this ridiculous man that she was so definitely in love with. 

Ray walked up to her but then immediately dropped to one knee. Nora took a step back but Ray caught her hand, her left hand.

“Nora Eleanor Darhk, I have literally no idea how we work sometimes but we do. I knew from the minute I met you, this you, after meeting the young you and seeing this you and time is confusing so I’m going to move on… I knew that we had a connection that if anything, I wanted to use it to help you become the amazing person I knew you were inside. The fact that you fell as in love with me as I am with you is the best bonus of anything. I have never been this happy before so, Nora, will you marry me?”

“Yes, Ray, yes I will absolutely marry you!” She jumped up and down so hard her Santa hat fell off. Ray picked it up as he stood and slid the ring on her finger. He placed the hat back on his head and Nora kissed him, hard. “I love you, Ray Palmer, and I can’t wait to be your wife!”

“Uh-oh, I see mommy kissing Santa Claus.” A voice broke their little reality and they both turned to see the rest of the Legends standing in the com center watching them. Nora realized it had been Sara to make the comment.

Nora buried her face in Ray’s chest out of embarrassment until Ray broke free and held Nora’s hand up proudly. “NORA AGREED TO MARRY ME!”

“I hoped she would, haircut, cause I don’t think anyone else could put up with your sunny disposition.” Mick grunted and started unraveling the tinsel from the railing on the command center.

“Mick! No, please come on I tried so hard to make the spirals evenly spaced!” Ray ran off to stop Mick from destroying the decorations and Nora observed her fiance being with his family, who she guessed was her family now too.


End file.
